


Metamorphosis

by Murderbirb



Series: Molting [1]
Category: Hollow Knight (Video Games)
Genre: Gen, It’s not comfortable for Hollow, Wyrm/Root/Void creatures don’t have a natural molting process, this gets a bit descriptive
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-28
Updated: 2021-01-28
Packaged: 2021-03-13 11:34:26
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 915
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29028030
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Murderbirb/pseuds/Murderbirb
Summary: The Pure Vessel goes through their first molt. It isn’t as pleasant as anyone expected it to be.
Series: Molting [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2133039
Comments: 6
Kudos: 41





	Metamorphosis

**Author's Note:**

  * For [KC_R](https://archiveofourown.org/users/KC_R/gifts).



> Hey KC_R, you are lucky that I’m not as petty as you. Please keep making great content and I will never, ever forgive you.

It’s been 6 months since the Pure Vessel ascended from the abyss, and now, it shall molt it’s shell for the first time. Molting was a normal thing for most, but the Pure Vessel was a much odder specimen. It was a hybrid of Wyrm, Root, and Void. Though, the void only meant that the vessel needs to use soul to grow, the truly most problematic part was the root. Roots are ever-growing creatures that can grow without molting, while Wyrms require molting in order to grow. 

All of these facts resulted in the King becoming very worried about the Vessel’s first molt. The vessel was worried as well, but it kept that a secret. Over the last week, the King had been preparing to get the vessel to molt. He cleansed out a large area of his workshop for the vessel, brought in a large soul totem to supply the soul, along with many smaller soul containers, and made sure that there he had no paperwork to do during the time so that he could put all of his focus on the molting of the vessel. 

In a corner of the workshop, the Pure vessel stood perfectly still, eyes blankly focused in front of it. The King slowly approached it, holding a soul container in his hand, before he spoke. “Vessel, the day has finally come for your first molting. Afterward, you shall continue your training, but larger and stronger than before.” He handed the vessel the soul container before continuing to speak. “Once you absorb the soul in this container, your molting will begin. I shall instruct you throughout the process.” The vessel continued to stare at the container, before it absorbed the soul and initiated the molt. 

The vessel began to shake, making it obvious that the process has begun. It didn’t take long for the King to walk behind them and held their shoulders, trying to keep them from collapsing. “You must stand still. It’s the only way to make sure you molt safely.” The vessel was having trouble with that. Their chest ached and it became harder to breathe. They couldn’t help but kneel over as they felt their body hurt so much. The King tried to lift them back up, but before he could, the vessel puked void onto the floor before they passed out. 

————————————————————

It was so dark. They couldn’t see. It was pure darkness. They couldn’t move, as they didn’t even feel their arms. It was scary. Where were they? 

It felt like hours had passed, but they felt their arms again, they moved them around, only to find that, wherever they were, it was very cramped. They looked for a way out, yet they saw nothing. They felt angry, as they punched the nearest wall, only to hear a *Crack*. They looked over at where they punched and noticed the indent. After one more punch, their arm broke through and, shortly after, pried the hole open with their hands. 

——————————————————————

The King was sitting in a chair, stuck in thought. 13 minutes ago, the Pure Vessel fell unconscious and had yet to wake up. He worried for them. We’re they hurt? Did he kill them?! He placed his hands on the side of his head. Did he kill his last hope for saving Hollownest? How could he?! What was wrong with him?!. The longer he stared at the vessel, the worse his thoughts became. Tears began to form at his eyes when he heard a noise. 

*Crack* 

He turned over to the Vessel, only to hear the crack again, but it was instantly followed by a sight that shook him to his core. 

An arm. 

There was an arm protruding out from the Vessel’s chest. It quickly moved back in, but he quickly saw another arm come out and pry open the chest. Shortly after, a head pulled itself out. He knew what this THING was. 

The vessel had molted. And the King saw for himself what he worried about most. They had no cocoon. Now, he saw what would’ve happened to the vessel if they had a cocoon, as they shed their old shell. They were slightly taller and their head was slightly more rounded with the nubs of the horns being sharper that before. Their body was a sludgey mess, as they didn’t have a shell to protect their soft, void flesh. Their face was maskless, with only small pieces of mask on their face, obviously the mask was still forming. Most importantly, though, they were shaking. It was obvious that their form was unstable and the only thing keeping them from falling apart into void was the soul in their body. 

The King quickly ran over and handed a container of soul to the Pure Vessel. He spoke shortly after. “You are to stay here in the Workshop until your shell and mask reform. Until that, you will be supplied with soul as to speed up the process and keep your body together. If you use all the soul in a container, take another one and use it’s soul. I shall be here until you are in shape for training to continue.” The Vessel wasted no time as they began to absorb the soul as the King walked back to his chair and sat down. This was only the first molt, yet it was already so terrifying to see what happened to the Vessel. 

He never knew that there were 15 more to come. 

**Author's Note:**

> Hey everyone, I have a discord that people can join. The link is right here.
> 
> https://discord.gg/gmh5qsFC
> 
> Plug it into Safari if you want to join
> 
> (I am specifically asking if you want to join the server, KC_R)


End file.
